Increasing the Epidemic Nature of Your Marketing Campaign - Going Viral
The viral marketing business model was first described by Tim Draper and popularized in 1997 to describe Hotmail’s practice of adding advertising to the outgoing mail of their users. In different terms, viral marketing has been around for as long as people have had items to sell. So, it is word-of-mouth marketing.
It is in the nature of a person’s tendency to “tell their friends”. The reference or terminology is the only thing that has changed. Surveys tell us that the average person has at least six close friends that they speak to fairly often. When they have an amazing experience with a product or a service provider, they will share this with 6 friends.
Those same surveys tell us that when an internet user finds something valuable, informative, funny, interesting or free on the internet, they will share that with 12 of their “online friends”. The internet is the platform for the most successful viral marketing business models out there.
We have also been told by the pros that in order to sell something, you need to give something away. I recently downloaded a free e-book with great dieting tips. It made complete sense. It was designed by the head of a supplement company. He suggested that you share the book with everyone. His goal, was to sell as many supplements as possible.
He may have sold the book. It contained as much information as many of the diet books out there, but he realized the importance of giving something to get something. Most people have a tendency to like companies that give them something of use, especially when they do not have to pay for it.
You will see countless software programs on the web that offer a free versions and a “ultimate” version. This is another example of a viral marketing business model. When one person sees this free software program, they will tell at least 12 of their friends online about it.
Social networking has become extremely popular in recent months. People with a Facebook account have thousands of online friends and they communicate with some of them daily. If you can provide something that they want to share with others, then you may have hit the target.
There are other elements of a successful viral marketing business model. But, coming up with something free that people can share with others is the most important element.
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